Folding bed



1101101181.) B. S. GRIFFITH.

Folding Bed.

No. 238,196. Pat ented Feb. 22, 1881-.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ETHELBERT S. GRIFFITH, OF TOLEDO OHIO.

FOLDING BED.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 238,196, dated February 22, 188 1.

Application filedDecember 6, 1880. (No model.) F

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ETHELBERT S. GRIF- FITH, of Toledo, Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Folding Beds, and which, in the main, possesses special adaptability to folding chairs and other furniture, of which the following is a specification.

7 My invention relates to folding beds, in which the side rails are adapted to fold into contact, or nearly so, and the supports of the bed to fold into a position parallel, or nearly so, with said rails when the bed is closed.

The objects of myimprovement are, first, to adapt the bed to fold into a small compact bulk; second, to provide a means by which the bed can be widened to any practicable eX-.

tent without the necessity of materially increasing its height from the floor, as is the casein the ordinary crossed-leg and trussedleg supports; third, to adapt the bed to be opened for use by a single movementas nearly as may be; fourth, to secure the supports of the bed in a fixed and permanent position while in use. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a perspective of the bed-frame. Fig. 2 is an end view of the bed when partly folded.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the two views.

The side rails, A, are pivoted to supports B. The supports B are connected by means of the jointed cross-bar G at either end of the cot. 5 The cross-bar O has two diagonal stays, D,

pivoted to it, which latter are again pivoted to the supports 13. These parts constitute the general framework of the bed.

The side rails are provided with steps a, and 0 also cords 21 passing through holes in either end of the rails, and through which latter these cords cantravel loosely, said cords being connected at either of their ends to one of the sup ports of the bed.

cross-bar O is out to a bevel and strikes one of the diagonal stays 1) when the cot is open, whereby a stop is provided when the cross-bar C has reached a horizontal position.

The projecting end o of the half-jointed.

The operation of closing this bed is as follows: The two supports located at either end of the side rails being pressed toward each other by a slight pressure at their lower extremities, the jointed crossbars will be sprung from their centers. The side rails will now move toward each other without hinderance, and the cords at either end of the bed will be slackened between the side rails correspondingly. When the side rails are brought together the supports of the bed can be swung into a parallel position with them, the cords being slack to admit of such movement. The head-rest supports being now drawn from the holes in the side rails the operation of closing is complete.

The operation of opening the bed for use is as follows: Grasp the side rails, one in each hand, midway from their extremities. A slight jerk will bring the supports into a position at right angles with said rails, and then by drawing the side rails apart the jointed cross-bar will be brought into a horizontal position, and

the cords being shortened at either side of the frame, the supports will be drawn up into contact with the stops provided for them at or near their upper extremities. After thrusting the bolster-supports into theholes through the side rails the operation of opening is finished.

I claim- 1. In a folding bed, the supports pivoted to the side rails, substantially as shown, and said rails being adapted to fold into contact, or nearly so.

2. In a folding bed, the legs pivoted to the side rails, substantially as indicated, the two legs constituting the several pairs being adapted to fold simultaneously into a position parallel with the side rails, or nearly so, when said rails are brought together.

3. The combination of the flexible cord,wire, or chain and the fixed stops, for the purposes indicated.

ETHELBERT s.

GRIFFITH. 

